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Wednesday, 24 June 2009

Images from Afghanistan

While I was writing the post about the embroidery from Afghanistan a while ago. I browsed through my photos I took on the trip and realised again what a wonderful experience it was. Today I want to share a few of the images from this beautiful and sad country with you.

This is a view of the Hindu Kush mountain range. It is the 'foot hills' of the Himalayas and quite an awesome site. I had the privilege to travel over this mountain range to the north of the country... in a minibus taxi. Not for the faint hearted. Really.

For those of you who has read the Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini, here are the kite flying boys. They make the kites and sell them next to the road. A rare splash of colour in an otherwise colourless country.

These photos I took at the market in Mazar-i-Sharif. These men were very friendly but obviously not used to be addressed by a western woman.

At the "Blue Mosque" in Mazar-i-Sharif. A truly beautiful building. The tile work is exquisite! Even the women in the burqa's seems to be part of the design.

. Unfortunately not everything in Afghanistan is beautiful. There are some very sad reminders of the different wars that has torn this country apart for the past 30+ years. I didn't feel comfortably adding pictures where people's faces are recognisable, so here are just a few photos to give an idea of the how much pain there still is and of the long road to peace and prosperity that still lies ahead.

Remnants of tanks that still date from the Russian invasion

Although new buildings go up, the woman are still not free.

A 'suburb' of Kabul, the capital city.

The majesty of what was can still be seen through all the bullet holes...

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AFRICAN FLOWER CHAIN

AFRICAN FLOWER CHAIN

During August and September 2012 I 'planted' 25 African Flowers across South Africa, creating an AFRICAN FLOWER CHAIN. For about a year after that I received messages and photos from these flowers, which I have added to the blog over time. The flowers have now faded and withered away - as is natural for flowers to do, but the memories are still alive. Follow the link in the top menu or in the catagories to read all the stories. If you have seen any of them and still want to send your story - please do so at africanflowerchain@gmail.com